Microsoft launches new online store

Following a soft launch in the UK earlier this year, Microsoft has debuted its online store in the United States. Simply titled the Microsoft Store, the outlet promises to become a one-stop-shop for all your favorite Microsoft gear from first-party software to hardware and PC/Xbox video games.

Purchases can either be shipped as regular boxed versions or downloaded, and users will be allowed to re-download a product until mainstream support for it ends (typically five years). Sounds handy, indeed, but the store apparently still has some way to go, with multiple sites reporting substantially higher prices compared to Amazon for example.

Microsoft has been testing the electronic-software-distribution concept for several years via its Windows Marketplace effort, whether the Microsoft Store will replace the former remains to be seen. In any case, the new store is now open for business alongside German, Korean and UK editions. Stores for France, Japan, Netherlands and Spain will be available in the near future while other countries will be covered “throughout the year.”